Try diascia for a great value boost to borders
Perennials Add this perennial to your list of plants to grow this year
Over my knees I’ve a blanket to keep me warm as I write on this chilly winter’s day; my study is northfacing and cold. However, what’s far more efficient than the blanket at warming me up is the thought of spring and summer in the garden. And it’s now we should be planning which perennials to add to our flock for 2021.
As I worked in the borders this week, I was reminded of a plant that should be at the top of our wishlists for next year. I love to see perennials that just refuse to give up flowering. One such plant that I brushed shoulders with in the border this week was Diascia personata, commonly known as the masked twinspur. It was still decorated with the odd pink flower. I’m not for a moment suggesting you plant this for winter interest, but you’ll find me shouting
Tamsin Westhorpe
Tamsin started her career working with her great uncle John Treasure at Burford House Gardens in Worcestershire. She later became a parks gardener in Dorset and after working as a magazine editor and horticultural lecturer for many years she now looks after Stockton Bury Gardens in Herefordshire. Within the 4-acre garden there is a wonderful collection of perennials. www.stocktonbury.co.uk from the rooftops about its summer value. This delightful plant, that reaches 1m (3¼ft) in height, is of such significance as it offers a constant flow of pink flowers from late spring into late autumn and even manages to hang on to a few in the winter months in a sheltered spot.
It’s the annual diascias that most gardeners are familiar with, but I’d suggest you befriend the perennial type as well. It belongs at home in a packed border rather than a pot as it requires other perennials to jostle with. If planted out in a well-drained soil it’s far more likely to make it through winter than if left in a container.
If you look up this plant, you’ll often find that it’s not recommended for a clay soil, but this is what we have here at Stockton Bury.
As long as you choose a well-drained spot and keep it ‘shaggy’ over winter (don’t cut it back) it should survive. Being a slightly tender semi-evergreen, I refrain from cutting back its stems until spring as this gives it a little extra winter protection.
It’s often sold as a plant with a hardiness rating of H4, which means it will cope with temperatures down to -5C (23F) but here in Herefordshire we’ve dipped way below that. Plant in any aspect apart from a north-facing one. If you’re concerned about getting these plants through the winter, then take some cuttings in late summer as a backup.
This is a trouble-free plant. I’ve rarely, if ever, seen it struck by a pest or disease. The only downside is that the unusual square stems snap very easily if knocked. For this reason, I would plant it away from the edge of the border.
I adore the partnership created by this diascia and the perennial Galega officinalis (common goat’s rue). The flowers look pretty as a picture together.
In the spring look into the crown of the plant for robust new shoots. Once these are evident cut back the old stems. Given this treatment and a position of sun you can expect at least seven months of flowers. Don’t concern yourself with deadheading; I never have. This would be a fiddly task and the flowers keep coming anyway.
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